Is it worth it to apply for out-of-town jobs?

Hey, news media: Someone needs to look into whether companies are considering out-of-town candidates or keeping their job searches strictly local. Anyone? Bueller? Bueller?

I'd pitch the story to my editor but, you know, I don't have one anymore.

I'm curious to know because I'm definitely looking all over the country as part of my job search, and I've already responded to a handful of openings in other states. But I'm wondering if I'm wasting my time.

I've noticed that some job postings are including verbiage like "local candidates only," which lends credence to my theory that companies that are actually hiring are finding long-distance candidates less and less attractive for a variety of reasons (cost, the shitty housing market, etc.).

I imagine no one is throwing mad relocation money at people right now. Even during the "good times," when I moved to Boise to work for a corporate newspaper, my relocation fee was modest at best — it only covered about a third of our moving expenses.

I've done some searching on news sites looking for stories on the subject, but I can't find any. Which means someone in the media needs to do one.

You can even take credit for coming up with the idea. Hell, I don't care — it's not like I have an annual review to worry about anymore. All I ask is that you let me know if and when you do the story so I can read, watch or listen to it.